Besiktas take on Kayserispor at Vodafone Park on Sunday afternoon, in the latest round of Turkish Super Lig fixtures.
The hosts will be looking to leapfrog their opponents in the table with a victory this weekend, as they currently sit two points below them in the standings.
Match preview
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Besiktas finished third in the Turkish Super Lig last season, which meant they had to get through three round of qualifying to reach the Europa Conference League group stages, but they got the job done, and they played their first match in the competition on Thursday.
The Black Eagles picked up a decent point in their opening game, drawing 1-1 away at Club Brugge in Group D, with Cenk Tosun bagging an equaliser in the 88th minute, his first goal of the campaign.
Although Senol Gunes's side have performed well in Europe up to this point, the manager may be a little disappointed with how they have started in the league, having dropped points twice in their opening four games.
As things stand, Besiktas are on seven points, having been held to a 1-1 draw against newly-promoted Pendikspor back in August, while they were on the receiving end of a 3-0 defeat against Trabzonspor in their last Super Lig game.
Although the Black Eagles dominated possession at Papara Park, they were very poor on the front foot, recording just one shot on target in the entire match, and a much-improved performance will be needed this weekend.
Kayserispor have made a very solid start to the season, having taken nine points from their opening five games, and they are yet to lose a game, drawing three and winning two of their matches.
On the opening day of the campaign, the Anatolian Star did very well to hold reigning champions Galatasaray to a 0-0 draw at the Kadir Has Stadium, and they have since gone on to win their other two home games.
Recep Ucar's side defeated newly-promoted Samsunspor 2-1 at the end of August, and they secured a 2-0 victory against Gaziantep FK last weekend, with Mame Thiam scoring a brace.
However, Sunday's game is likely to be the toughest test of Kayserispor's season so far, given that they have a very poor record against Besiktas, losing four of the last five matches between the two sides.
Team News
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Besiktas have no fresh injury concerns heading into Sunday's game, but some changes may be in order, given that they were in action on Thursday night, and there is a chance Tosun is rewarded with a start after scoring the equaliser last time out.
As such, Vincent Aboubakar may drop to the bench, having not scored in his last two games, while Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain may come back into the midfield, replacing Amir Hadziahmetovic.
As for Kayserispor, Olivier Kemen was forced off with injury in the first half against Gaziantep last weekend, meaning Ali Karimi may be handed a start in central midfield.
Thiam has been in incredible recent form, scoring five goals in his last four games, and the 30-year-old is poised to lead the line for the visitors.
Besiktas possible starting lineup:
Gunok; Rosier, Bailly, Amartey, Masuaku; Tiknaz, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Fernandes; Rashica, Muleka, Tosun
Kayserispor possible starting lineup:
Bayazit; Uzodimma, Attamah, Kocaman, Carole; Ackah, Sazdagi, Civelek, Kemen, Mane; Thiam
We say: Besiktas 2-0 Kayserispor
Although Kayserispor have made a solid start to the season, they are still yet to pick up a win away from home, and they have a very poor record against Besiktas.
As such, we expect the hosts to run out fairly comfortable winners on Sunday afternoon.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
